The present invention generally relates to the field of display apparatus used in conjunction with manually actuatable pushbuttons that select different operative modes of operation.
The use of pushbuttons to select different operative modes of operation is well known. Such pushbuttons are commonly used in automotive radios to select the predetermined operative frequencies at which the radio apparatus will function. In such automotive radios, generally only a limited amount of visual surface area can be provided thus resulting in limiting the number of operative modes of the radio which can be visually displayed to the radio operator. The fact that only a limited amount of area is available for visual displays becomes a critical consideration when automotive radios are combined with other entertainment devices, such as cassette or cartridge tape players or CB radios. In such combination units, because of the greater number of operative states of the combination unit, a greater number of visual indications of these operative states must be provided. Because only a limited amount of visual surface area is available, this results in either making each one of these visual displays smaller so as to accommodate the space limitations, which is aesthetically undesirable, or eliminating some of the displays, which is also undesirable.